American Anthropologist 1890

In The Ascent of Man Frank Baker takes a fairly Lamarckian view of human evolution, in which physical change is acquired through individual effort and can be passed on to subsequent generations. These cumulative changes over successive generations produce easily observable structural effects such as modification of organs, changing colors, and reshaping of entire regions of the human body. Thus, evolutionary changes can be seen in every organ of the body. Baker examines these vestigial conditions in terms of modifications of the limbs, the erect position, and the segmentation of the body.

Baker uses muscles of the upper limbs to support his position of vestigial conditions. He presents the special flexor muscle for the thumb as a representation of a new anatomical element and the disappearance of palmaris longus, which he suggests aided in climbing and grasping, as evidence of extant muscles. He contends that such modifications show progressive development in the individual and the race, asserting the lower races, primarily of African descent, exhibit many primitive, i.e. ape-like, anatomical conditions.

In terms of the erect position, Baker suggests that the Caucasian foot form is best adapted for erect locomotion. This, he claims, can also been seen in the muscle of the calf which he finds are smaller in non-European races. Furthermore, Baker contends that the gradual transition of shapes of the vertebrae is nonexistent in the spine of the lowest savages- Australian, Andaman, Bushman – and those of the gorilla, chimpanzee, and gibbon, thereby allowing these races to run through the bush in a semi-erect position. He also insists that the variation in the foramen magnum of the skull aligns the lower races with anthropoids. Differences in muscle attachment and insertion and number of ribs indicate man’s divergence from other animals, as does the capacity and complexity of the human cranium.

While many of Baker’s examples of segmentation and vestigial conditions are still used in modern science, this paper is a prime example of the ethnocentric and racist notions, which dominated anthropological writing in the nineteenth century.

Frank Baker, Vice-President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, presents support for the Lamarckian theory of evolution and attempts to explain why white Europeans are the superior race. He does this through a study of comparative anatomy, focusing specifically on the structure of the limbs, erect posture and segmentation of the body. Lamarck’s theory asserts that we experience minute and transitory changes caused by adaptation to our environment. These are typically advantageous to survival, and as a result are passed from parent to offspring. These changes are cumulative over long periods of time and can be seen in our anatomy. According to the author, this would explain the physical differences found in different “races” and also explain why we find numerous places in the body where there are organs or structures that are no longer used or are relatively recent additions.

Baker is very detailed in his discussions about the different aspects of anatomy presented to support his position and he was probably well informed and knowledgeable for his era. In most of the examples he gives, “higher races” are shown to have changed the most while “lower races” are more similar to anthropoid apes. Statements such as, “There is no abrupt transition from the spine of the lowest savages-Australian, Bushman, Andaman-to that of the gorilla, gibbon, and chimpanzee”, and “here again we see that the ideally perfect form is more nearly approached in the civilized races” clearly reveal what Baker means by lower and higher races. When comparing craniological data, he notes that there is not enough definite variation to separate the races “as was anticipated.” In other words he was looking for an outcome which could prove that the lower or “inferior” races were more closely related to the apes. Class and moral distinctions enter his argument as well, with the anatomy of criminals and laborers presented as showing marked variation to the “cultivated and intelligent classes.” This article is a classic example of the scientific racism and class distinctions that were common in 19th century anthropology.

Over the twenty-one years that John Bourke has interacted with the Native tribes of the Rio Grande, the Gila, and the Colorado he has seen the incorporation of many Western practices into daily life. Because of this, he has written Vesper Hours of the Stone Age in the hope of capturing earlier modes of life, which are quickly fading among these people.

He begins by examining traditional weapons used by these groups. The native spear was made from the shoot of century plant or soap-seed and tipped with a flint barb. Inserting an old cavalry saber into the shaft and fixing over it the dried sexual organ of a bull later improved upon this structure. The Apache arrow took many forms and was composed of a reed, stem, and barb. The barb was secured to the stem by sinew in the belief that the heat from a wound would loosen the sinew and disengage the point, thus increasing the victim’s pain. Arrowheads were generally made of obsidian, chalcedony, and occasionally pieces of beer bottles. Bows were constructed from mountain mulberry or bow-wood, and occasionally cedar. Feathering of the lower shaft of arrows was accomplished by fastening three half-hawk feathers with sinew. War-clubs composed of a stone sewed up in a cow’s tail were often used to crush an enemy’s skull during village raids. Rumor suggests that the Apache at one time used boomerangs studded with obsidian teen that were capable of decapitation. Bourke also makes note of the use of shields made from buffalo hides, boring-tools, fire-sticks, and stone amulets.

While Bourke’s paper suggests that he will be discussing traditional features among these native groups, many of these objects mentioned incorporate Western features, such as cavalry sabers and beer bottles. This suggests that there is no distinct “closing hour of the Stone Age” for these people, but instead a gradual transition of native culture as they incorporated Western features into daily life.

Bourke uses first, second, and third-hand sources to describe various indigenous technologies in this 1890 article. He provides a glimpse of the “wild tribes” of North America before the closing days of the U.S. expansion to the Pacific Coast. Bourke stays as close to the facts as his recollection will allow, reminiscing upon people whose cultures and lifeways were being actively destroyed. He apparently felt a pressing need to preserve some of this information since he saw his subjects as having been lifted out of their “Stone Age” existences and, “…not merely subjected to a condition of peace, but in most instances notably advanced in the path of civilization, their children trained in the white man’s ways, and all traces of earlier modes of life fast fading into the haze of tradition.” Bourke’s goal was to preserve some of that “haze” for posterity.

To that end, Bourke describes specific artifacts, including common and indigenous nomenclature, manner of construction, and associated activities. He includes an inventory of weapons, such as lances, bows, projectile points, clubs, slings, blow-guns, and boomerangs. He also describes shields, mortars, boring-tools, fire-sticks, and amulets. Preferred construction materials and methods are noted and some contrasts are drawn between various indigenous groups and between pre- and post-contact eras. Bourke also addresses the issue of the reliability of his information, noting his sources.

This article evocatively documents the late nineteenth-century worldview. Bourke describes indigenous groups as “wild tribes” and as “savages.” His judgments are definite and often ethnocentric. For example, he notes that, “The Pimas and Maricopas used to be greatly addicted to plundering, in which they rivaled the Prussians.” Bourke does attempt to get details correct, perhaps his only sign of regretting the “vesper hours” of his subjects.

In Notes on Indian Child-Language, A.F. Chamberlain provides examples of “child-words” in Native American speech, words spoken within the realm of children, in hopes of shedding light on language-development. Noting the scarce amount of work in the field of child-language, its phonology and vocabulary, Chamberlain suggests the need for greater exploration into the speech of children. He hopes investigation in this area may help to determine the origin and development of language.

Chamberlain’s data consist of lists of “child words” from Algonkin, Arawak, Iroquois, and Mohawk dictionaries. For example, at the time of his study, the Arawak dictionary defined the child word for papa as awáwa, while the ordinary Arawak word was iti. He ends his paper by acknowledging that he is in no position at that particular time to discuss the inter-relatedness of the words or their origin. But, Chamberlain does hope that this article will lead to greater discourse on the subject.

Overall, the article is nothing more than what the title suggests, merely a few pages of notes on Native American words. Since there is so little information offered, one wonders why Chamberlain did not wait until he had more substantial material to comment on. Little about the information offered suggests even hints about language origins.

This article compiles vocabulary lists used by small Indian children. The author includes vocabulary from five languages: Arawak, Algonquin, Mohawk, Iroquois, and the Mississauga of Ontario. The tribes represented come from Lake of the Two Mountains, Quebec, Canada. He drew his information from several texts and conducted one-on-one interviews with tribal elders, who were only able to remember a few words from their youth.

Though some languages are only represented by a few words collected in the interviews, long lists exist for both the Iroquois and Algonquin children. Many interesting words with easy to understand definitions and example sentences are provided. Words translated are common among all children, including translations for parental names. There are also many words to express feelings such as being hurt, tired, hungry and loving. The tribes represented come from Lake of The Two Mountains, Quebec, Canada.

Chamberlain points out that at the time of this article little research or study about irregularities in child-language had been done. He did not wish to explore the more remote origins of the language or possible inter-relation of words between tribes. At the end of his article he requests additions from other sources and hopes the topic will generate further discussion.

A.F. Chamberlain’s article examines the widespread belief in the thunder-bird among the Algonkin tribes. The thunder-bird is a divine creature that, depending on the particular cultural folk-tale, can make thunder by beating its wings and shoot thunderbolts from its eyes. He contends that belief systems incorporating the thunder-bird span regions as vast as the Canadian Northwest, the coast of the Atlantic, the shore of Hudson’s Bay, and along the southern banks of Lake Superior.

Basing his information on missionary and anthropological accounts of native belief systems in these areas, Chamberlain finds that the thunder-bird tradition is fairly consistent among various groups in these regions. He supports this position by providing short descriptions of the thunder-bird among different native groups such as the Cree, Ottawa, and the Mississauga.

He goes on to note that among the Missisaguas and Ojebways, children often have the word “thunder” associated with their name, such as Head Thunder or Yellow Thunder. Chamberlain concludes his paper by suggesting that Algonkian belief systems concerning this mythical figure mirror those of the Siouan and other native groups. He proposes further examination into thunder-bird folklore between the Siouan and Algonkian people.

This article compares belief in the thunderbird among the various Algonkin tribes ranging from northwest Canada east to the Atlantic and south to the banks of Lake Superior. The thunderbird motif is presented as wide-spread throughout the region and the article compares the attributes of the Thunderbird as conceived by the Cree, Ottawa, Mississagua, Ojebways, Pottowattamies, and Passamaquoddy. In presenting his arguments, Chamberlain references other writers and provides a bibliography.

In general, the thunderbird is considered divine among the Algonkins and is believed to create thunder by flapping its wings. Lightning, made by the flashing of its eyes, is used like arrows to kill serpents or monsters “which it takes from under the earth”. The bird is usually described as a great eagle. Storms and tornados are attributed to its wrath and fair weather to its good humor.

Extensive comparative details are provided. For example, in one Passamaquoddy version, thunderbirds appear as humans with wings. Thunder is the sound of their wings, and lightning the fire and smoke of their pipes. In another version, thunder and lightning are brother and sister. The brother has a child by an Indian woman and this child causes the rumbling before the crash of thunder. The Passamaquoddy also believe that wind is caused by a great bird called “Wind Blower” who lives in the far north and sits on a rock at the end of the sky. To the Crees and Ojebways, however, wind-bird and thunderbird are the same being, who takes the form of an eagle. The Tetons believe that the snake is the enemy of thunder.

Chamberlain notes in conclusion that the Algonkin beliefs about thunder are closer to those of the Sioux than to any other Indian tribe. He urges that a close and detailed comparison of Sioux and Algonkin thunder stories be made in order to shed light upon the relations of these two peoples in the past.

J. Owen Dorsey begins his paper by noting that he read a paper several years back on the same topic. This, in conjunction with a request by a colleague, inspired him to undertake his current endeavor into Indian personal names.

His data consists of six lists of Native American names from the Winnebago, Iowa, Oto, Missouri, Kwapa, Osage, Kansa, Omaha, and Ponka. Dorsey collates these six lists with names from the 1880 census of the Dakota, Assiniboin, and other Siouan tribes. These lists are arranged such that the Native American names precede their English meanings and includes columns examining: the gens and subgens the name is found in, the number of the name, the gender of the name holder, and the animal associated with the name. Dorsey also suggests that there may be a mythical or symbolic meaning to some of the color names given to Native Americans, such a Red Elk.

He concludes his paper by highlighting some questions, which arise as a result of his work. These include whether or not the Dakota or Sioux ever used animal names for their gentes and whether or not there has always been a difference between Dakota tribes and groups from the same linguistic family. While short, overall Dorsey’s paper leaves the average reader overwhelmed. This is due to the dense way in which he reflects his data, seemingly poor organization, and his lack of discussion in terms of what the reader is examining.

Using as his primary source the results of the 1880 census, Dorsey, with the aid of an interpreter, collected 3,146 personal tribal names. This article does not in fact list all of the names that he gathered, but gives an overview of the organizational method he used in compiling the data, which was to be separately published in a later monograph. The work he refers to consists of six lists, headed thusly: Winnebago; Iowa, Oto, and Missouri; Kwapa; Osage; Kansa; and Omaha and Ponka. In this article he discusses briefly each of the several common classes of Indian personal names he recognized.

The classes that Dorsey identifies are: color, iron, whirlwind, nation or oyate, tunkan or stone-god, thunder-being, and composite animal names. As an example, under the color heading are found black, white, yellow, spotted, and gray buffalo names. Interestingly, he admits that the translation of a commonly used term as “iron” or “metal” is questionable; that the “true rendering” may have been lost along with a more “archaic meaning.” He notes that he had not found any name in the first or second person. Example: Female Difficult to be Seen.

He stresses that all of the tribes included “have their gentes named after animals,” and in his conclusion poses the question as to whether Dakota or Sioux people ever employed animal names in their naming practices, for he finds the anomaly intriguing. He had learned, by means of conversation with white missionaries, that the Dakota formed their personal names around a taboo system.

The bulk of the article consists of names in the English form as they fall under his commonly identifiable classes. Dorsey specifies that selected Omaha and Ponka genealogical tables were to be included in his future monograph, as well as tribal myths which related to the names. Information on the kinship system and marriage laws of the people was to be written up as well.

As the title indicates, Omaha Clothing and Personal Ornaments by J. Owen Dorsey examines garments worn by men and women in the Omaha community. Dorsey’s material was collected from 1878-1880 on the Omaha reservation with the assistance of two Crows, two Omahas, and Joseph La Fleche.

While some Omaha and Ponka (a group culturally similar to the Omaha) had incorporated Western garments into their attire, ancient male dress was composed of leggings, breech-cloths, buffalo robes, and moccasins. No distinction existed between dignitaries and common people. A hat made of buffalo hairs was used during cold weather and men on the warpath wore another hat constructed from brant feathers. Belts were made from various animal skins and the influence of white men lead to the use of yarn in belts. Foot coverings made of buffalo hair or red grass were worn under moccasins. Omaha moccasins could be distinguished from those of other tribes by the shape of the sole, position and number of tags on the heel, and the porcupine or beadwork designs.

Ancient clothing for women consisted of skin shirts, skin dresses, and robes of buffalo hide. Since the arrival of Westerners the attire of Omaha women changed to a blanket, chemise, calico sacque, skirt, and moccasins. Necklaces were worn instead of collars and were fashioned out of colored beads and horsehair. Distinguished men wore plumes and eagle feathers, while women wore headbands.

Hair pomades were made from buffalo or otter fat mixed with fragrant grass. Perfumes were plaited into necklaces and worn around the neck. They were made from various grasses and seed. Various dyes were used to color porcupine quills and horsetails. Tattooing was practiced on daughters of prominent men in the tribe. These tattoos generally consisted of round spots on a women’s forehead symbolizing the sun.

Dorsey’s exploration of Omaha garments is extremely detailed and insightful.

This article provides a list of ancient and modern items used as clothing and decoration by the Omaha and Ponka people. Information was obtained by the author during 1878-80 on the Omaha reservation. Although separate male and female lists are given, some items are noted as being used by both sexes.

The author provides many Indian terms, which are mostly Omaha, but some Ponka. For each item, the author gives a description, sometimes specifying such things as the materials used as well as its function, and which groups used it. Items such as headwear are given more detailed descriptions than are “foot coverings,” for example, but Dorsey does list and describe types of moccasins, also explaining their importance in distinguishing between different tribes. The shape of the sole, tags on the heels, and the type of bead or porcupine-work on the moccasins provide identifying features.

The author also describes skin ornamentation in considerable detail, offering a brief history of the Omaha practice of tattooing.

Ferree examines the form architecture takes based on the influence of both natural materials available and climatic conditions in a given region. He provides numerous examples from each inhabited continent, although he only briefly touches on the impact environment has on architecture in cultures that use a high percentage of building materials that do not occur in a natural state.

The first factor described is wind, to which he credits the development of the rectangular dwelling, although Ferree provides no explanation as to why this shape is suited to protection from the wind. He also states that the entrance is placed to the leeward in many cultures found in areas with strong winds. In addition, for cultures in climates that are both cold and windy there is usually a single, small entrance and all openings are covered with shutters or some form of curtain or mat.

Next, Ferree moves on to tropical areas that experience high daytime temperatures and cold nights, where one finds houses that can be opened up to allow air circulation in the daytime but can also be closed at night to keep heat in. In areas that are consistently hot, Ferree explains that dwellings may be open at one end or may have no walls at all.

Rain is also credited with affecting the shape of dwellings. In areas of little rain, Ferree explains that there are often flat-roofed structures, whereas in regions with abundant precipitation a pointed or inclined roof is necessary to shed water or snow. In areas with a highly variable temperature depending on season, Ferree cites a number of cultures that construct two or more types of shelters that are suitable for the weather of each season.

Switching from a discussion of climatic influences, Ferree moves on to explain the impact available materials have on the techniques and forms of buildings. In a treeless environment, he explains, the earliest buildings tend to be made of skins over frames. This form of dwelling he claims is particularly well-suited for use by nomadic groups. At high latitudes, animal bones may be used to construct frames to hold skins, and in some cases snow or ice is also used to build dwellings. More sedentary groups in areas with few trees tend to use clay and then various forms of bricks for construction, which, he states, eventually leads to the development of the arch.

In areas where stone is available and used, large pieces of stone tend to lead to the development of post and lintel architecture, while smaller stones are suited to the development of the arch. Small stones, Ferree states, are also often covered with stucco or plaster. In regions where bamboo is common, Ferree describes the form the architecture takes as of a “light and graceful character.” Where palm trees are available, thatched roofs are common. If large enough trees are present, bark may also be used as a covering for a frame.

The final architectural feature Ferree discusses is the floor level of dwellings and storage buildings. To keep animals, such as lizards or rats, out of homes and storage areas, the floor may be raised up off the ground. In areas where it is cold the floor may be a pit sunken into the ground to retain warmth, while the floor may again be raised in hot areas to allow air to circulate beneath the building.

In spite of several comments that hint toward a belief of unilineal evolution and a suggestion that the architecture of non-Western groups has not changed in thousands of years, Ferree does credit ‘primitive’ architects with the construction of dwellings faithful to the necessities of the prevailing environment.

Barr Ferree’s analysis of “primitive architecture” is based on an assumption of environmental determinism. Climate is viewed as the main influence in “primitive architecture,” but is also accepted as influencing artistic styles and the architecture of civilized buildings. Ferree assumes that more “advanced” people live in more diversified climates and that uniformity in the environment would lead to uniformity in thought, art, manufacturing, and architecture.

Ferree discusses the influences of wind, rain, snow, temperature, and season on architecture. He gives many examples. Tasmanian natives use windbreaks to avoid wind in their severe climate and Tongans build roofs nearly to the ground without walls to allow wind to cool dwellings in their hot climate. The influence of locally available materials, which Ferree also attributes to climate, is discussed. Animal skins, clay, stone, “artificial building materials,” mud and millet, wattle and daub, bamboo, palm leaves, bark, ice, bones, are all mentioned.

Ferree concluded that primitive architecture is based equally on cultural ability and the environment. As he states, “Nothing can be more rash than to attempt to formulate a law of architecture. The records of primitive architecture illustrate no law other than the action of environment and sociology. We may indeed say that man uses the best building material known to him in the best way he can. This is, in fact, but one of the great principles underlying all architecture, both primitive and civilized, though perhaps it is best illustrated in primitive forms.”

Henshaw, H. W. A New Linguistic Family in California. American Anthropologist January, 1890 Vol.3:45-49.

Henshaw states that there are two main purposes to his paper, namely the identification of a no longer extant native tribe from California, and the presentation of as many facts about this tribe as have been gathered. In addition, he intends this article to prompt students to seek out similar cases for research. He posits that while archaeologists can gain insight into the mode of living through the study of the material record, it is through the examination of vocabularies belonging to such tribes that the student of linguistics will be able to shed light on daily thought, religious ideas, relationships to other groups, origins, as well as migrations.

In this article, Henshaw does not draw any specific conclusions about the nature of the tribe studied – the Esselen or Ecclemachs of the Monterey Bay region – other than that the language of this tribe constitutes a language family distinct from that of other tribes in the region. He initially came to this conclusion based upon a vocabulary of 39 words compiled by Alexander Taylor.

In order to augment his knowledge of the tribe and language, Henshaw explains his journey through the region in search of native speakers. While he does not find any native speakers of the language, in two separate locales he does encounter three subjects who had had contact with the Esselen tribe. These individuals are able to confirm the original vocabulary as well as add a number of further words and phrases, bringing the total to 110 words and 68 phrases and sentences. Additionally, one of the individuals describes the language of the Esselen tribe as being entirely different from other languages of the region, which further confirms to Henshaw his belief that the Esselen language constitutes a previously unknown language family in the Monterey Bay area.

Henshaw, H. W. A New Linguistic Family in California. American Anthropologist January, 1890 Vol. 3:45-49.

In this article, Henshaw provides evidence for the existence of a previously unknown language in Northern California, namely Esselen. His goal is to discover more information about the culture that existed with the language. In documenting the existence of this language, Henshaw explains how he found out about the language, how he found out about and researched Esselen lifestyle, and how he went on to create a vocabulary list of words in the Esselen language.

Henshaw’s contact with the new language began with his discovery of a collection of newspaper articles obtained by the Bureau of Ethnology, written in the mid 1800s by Alexander Taylor. This collection told of a group of Indians from California, called the Esselen, and gave 39 words from their language, which did not match up with any known languages at that time. With this information, Henshaw then set out to interview the few remaining Native Americans in Northern California regarding the Esselen. Eventually he found some Rumsien people who had been relatives of the Esselen by marriage. They were able to verify the words from the Esselen language. He eventually collected “110 words and 68 phrases and sentences” in the Esselen language and also collected some information about the Esselen way of life.

Henshaw’s research provides evidence for a lost culture and an unknown language. The article keeps the Esselen from completely disappearing from the cultural record.

Maize, pumpkins, beans, a variety of cotton, and tobacco are all listed by Henshaw as being gifts “of the Indian to civilization.” To this list, he would like to add maple sugar, the making of which he believes was discovered by natives of North America and taught to European settlers. In spite of several statements throughout the article referring to natives as savages, Henshaw reasons that natives knew of maple as a food product before the arrival of Europeans due to the “great familiarity of the Indians with the natural edible products of America, and the general ignorance of the European on this subject.”

He first examines a number of French narratives, all recorded between 1700 and 1846. All but one of the narratives he looks at seem to indicate that Europeans learned the process of making maple sugar from native groups. In addition, a quote from a Kickapoo leader shows that, at least among the Kickapoo, natives found it amusing that anyone might think they had been unaware of how to extract maple sugar before European contact. Henshaw also describes maple sugar as being an integral part of the diet of several tribes, and not simply a luxury.

Henshaw provides a detailed description of linguistic terms relating to sugar and maple sugar among a wide variety of native groups, stating that these provide the best evidence for maple sugar having its origin among natives rather than Europeans. He explains that the two most common methods for naming novelties introduced by Europeans were to adopt the foreign name or to modify a native name applied to a similar object. Henshaw demonstrates that nearly all of the native names for cane sugar are derived from modifying words that signify maple sugar, most of which referencing the tree or sap from which maple sugar is made. This, he believes, is conclusive evidence that maple sugar originated among groups native to America, and was later taught to Europeans.

R.W. Henshaw documents the important agriculture achievements that originated with Native American Indians. These include the domestication of such plants as maize, pumpkins, beans, cotton and tobacco, as well as the production process for maple sugar. His paper sets out to demonstrate that Indians have manufactured maple sugar since antiquity and that Europeans learned this expertise from Indians, rather than vice versa.

Henshaw argues that Indian familiarity with the natural edible products of their land coupled with European ignorance on this subject support the likelihood that Indians first discovered the properties of maple sap. The evidence for the antiquity of maple sugar production among Indians is found in various religious festivals, linguistic terminology, and written descriptions of Indian life. Many tribes had mythic accounts of sap production or ritualized maple sugar manufacturing, including the maple-dance of the Iroquois and maple sugar festival of the Ojibwa. Descriptions of traditional Indian foods commonly list maple sugar as part of their main food supply. In April and May, a mixture of maple sugar and water sometimes provided the only food source available to Indians. Historical accounts also document the Indian origin of sugar making. The French writer Lafietau, well acquainted with aboriginal customs and food sources, writes that: “…the French make it better than the Indian women, from whom they have learned how to make it; but they have not yet been able to whiten-or to refine it.” Writing in1756, Bossu is equally explicit as to the source of the sugar making art: “the French who are settled at the Illinois have learnt from the Indians to make this syrup, which is an exceeding good remedy for colds, and rheumatism.”

Henshaw’s article is intended to correct an oversight: “most authors appear to have taken it for granted that sugar making was an Indian art, and so have passed it by with a word.”

In this article, Hodge describes the foot races held by the ZuZi. Hodge states that all the foot races are religious in nature, although he describes the first race of the year as holding particular ceremonial significance. The first race, he states, is run along a short course of approximately two miles and involves ceremonial goals set by the priests. Six individuals, rather than teams, race independently against one another in this race, and no wagers on the outcome take place.

The subsequent races are run along a course of 25 miles over a varied landscape and occur after the planting has been completed. Hodge explains that two opposing teams of three to six runners compete against one another, and that a great number of wagers are made before the race begins.

Each team has a marked stick, which is kicked by members as they progress along the course of the race. No racer may touch the stick with his hand before reaching the goal at the end of the course, so care must be taken to prevent the stick from being kicked into surrounding terrain from which it would be irretrievable. After the first team reaches the goal, the stick is picked up and the individual members of the winning team race to see who will reach the plaza of the pueblo first.

Hodge briefly describes the ceremonial preparations for the race, explaining that they take place the evening before the race. Participants remove themselves to a secluded area to perform the ceremony, while priests watch for omens foretelling a fortunate race or possibly misfortune, in which case the race is postponed.

This article describes ceremonial foot races which take place after planting time among the Zuni Indians of the Southwest. Who participates in the race, how it is conducted, the importance of betting, and associated religious traditions are all discussed. Hodge does not specify his reasons for being at the race, but does mention that one he attended lasted for two hours.

The races are set up as competitions between young men who represent different regions of the pueblo. For example, the western half may compete against the eastern half, or the northern half against the southern half. There are three to six racers on each team. The race is run in a relay-style, with one racer from each team first kicking their sticks, while the next team members in line run and position themselves near where they determine the stick will land. They then kick the stick upon its landing and the next team players do the same thing. This process continues on until a specified finishing point is reached.

Betting is an important component of the races and begins as soon as the teams are chosen. Hodge writes: “Money, silver belts, bracelets and rings, shell necklaces, turquoises, horses, sheep, blankets, in fact anything and everything of value to the Indian, are offered.…” Some men bet all of their property, apparently, even their wives. Women wager as well. The author does not explain the reasoning behind all the betting, but just stresses its importance.

Specific rituals also take place the day before and on the day of the race. The racers go in small groups to a remote area far from the village on the evening before the race and dig a hole, burying in it some sacred food and two cigarettes of natural tobacco. They then leave the spot and sit silently for a while, meditating, before returning home. If a roosting bird becomes scared or an owl hoots while they are returning home, it is a sign of bad luck. However, if lightning or a shooting star is seen, it is a good sign. The racers are blessed by a priest when they return. They then share a cigarette and one of them says a prayer for the race. The above rituals are known as the “preparatory ceremonies.”

The author connects these traditional Zuni foot races to the harvesting season but does not explain the nature of this relationship in detail, simply noting that the races begin after planting has been finished.

Hoffman offers a collection of origin myths obtained from members of the Menomoni Indian tribe of Wisconsin. Included is a story about the origin of totems, although Hoffman does not explain in this article precisely what function these totems serve among the Menomoni. The remaining myths provided here all concern Manabush, an apparently legendary figure who provides various things for the Menomoni people.

The first story included is the origin of totems. In it, the Great Spirit creates spirits in the form of animals and birds. The Great Spirit also transforms the bear into an Indian, who then collects various brothers and younger brothers to form a family for himself. This family comes to dwell with the Thunderers, another family, which is responsible for bringing rain and caring for fire. These two families form the core of the Menomoni people, and Hoffman also provides a listing of actual totems and their ranking, although very few of the totems listed match those in the origin story.

To alleviate the hardships of these two families that have come to live together, the Good Spirit sends Manabush, a spirit born as a twin and who later transforms into a rabbit. Manabush is credited with bringing additional food sources and teaching the people the use of medicinal plants. In other stories, he is credited with shaping the hills and ridges of the earth, destroying a water monster that is devouring fishermen, killing the evil spirits who caused the demise of his twin brother, restoring the earth after a great deluge, and bringing fire and tobacco to the Menomoni. His twin brother, who died at birth and was later resurrected to accompany Manabush, became the chief of the shadows in the afterworld after being slain by evil spirits.

This article summarizes the creation story of the Menomoni peoples of Wisconsin, as it was told to Dr. Hoffman by tribal members while he was researching the Mita`wit, or Grand Medicine Society. Hoffman, a medical doctor, describes these mythical events as literally as possible. The creation myth tells how the ‘Good Spirit’ created spirit beings, (menidos) in the form of animals or birds, from which “light skinned Indians” were than created. Detailed accounts of the animal totems and their lineages, as well as the importance of each animal family, are presented.

Menomoni totemic figures interact with each other forming friendships, alliances, and even becoming bitter archenemies, as they undergo life experiences. Hoffman explains how Manabush, the “Great Rabbit,” gave humans curing medicines and describes Manabush’s ability to tell the difference between good animal totems and evil animal totems. Fire, canoes, and tobacco are all brought into creation through the numerous adventures of the totemic figures. As presented by Hoffman, Menomoni creation myth also includes a story of death and resurrection, a flood that kills most of earth’s creatures, and a description of how the son of Manabush recreates the world from the few animals that are left.

Hoffman’s article includes many words from the Menomomi language, and their definitions.

Hoffman provides a brief description of the key elements of a ball game among the Ojibwa in this short article. He implies that the Ojibwa are less civilized than their neighbors, relying on hunting and gathering techniques for subsistence, although he does not explain which neighbors he is referring to specifically. Hoffman also does not state the methods he used to collect his information regarding the ball game.

Hoffman states that horse racing, running, and ball play all occur during the spring, summer, and autumn, suggesting that these activities are undertaken in order to procure the goods wagered rather than for pleasure of participation. He also briefly describes the training methods of the athletes, including a depiction of a weight tied around the ankles in order to strengthen the legs.

Between 80 and 100 players are divided into two teams of equal size, with the best players stationing themselves in the center of the field, the poorer players defending the goals at either end of the field, and the heaviest players spreading out between the center and the goals. In order to score, the ball must be thrown from the ball stick and touch the goal, although the defenders can intercept the ball and return it to the playing field. The team with the most goals at the end of the game is declared the winning team.

The article ends with a discussion on the similarities between the Ojibwa ball game and that played by the Dakotas of Missouri, and Hoffman concludes that the Dakotas must have borrowed the game from the Ojibwa. He also states that there are no special ceremonial preparations preceding the game, claiming that this indicates the lesser importance of the game among the Ojibwa and Dakotas than among other tribes in North America.

Hoffman describes the style of ball play which was popular among the Ojibwa Indians of northern Minnesota (and other nearby groups as well). The author carefully explains how the game is played, what equipment is used, and how the Ojibwa style differs from that of other groups. Hoffman also describes the physical attributes (“speed and endurance”) necessary to play the game.

According to Hoffman, many Ojibwa Indians in the northern region of Minnesota spend a majority of their time engaging in physical activities, particularly sports. Along with ball play, other popular sports among this group include horse racing and running.

The rules and regulations of ball play are described, as is the equipment used. This includes simply a ball made of numerous layers of buckskin and a playing stick with a net at the end. The stick is used for catching and throwing the ball, and also for striking opponents.

Hoffman also compares Ojibwa ball play to the ball play of other Indian groups, particularly the Dakota of the upper Missouri area. He finds only slight differences between them. The Chikasaws, Chactaws, and other southern groups also engage in ball play but their styles are much more “brutal,” often causing extreme injuries.

Holmes, W. H. A Quarry Workshop of the Flaked-Stone Implement Makers in the District of Columbia. American Anthropologist January, 1890 Vol.3:1-26.

In this article Holmes describes the excavation of a quarry site in great detail. He begins with a discussion of previous studies of stone implements in the District of Columbia, and states that his is the first to examine an actual quarry workshop. Holmes also includes a thorough description of the location and the geological composition of the site. The area of worked material, including discards and flakes, measures 55 feet wide, averaging a depth of 6 feet, and extending perhaps half a mile based on surface distribution of artifacts.

The finds from the site do not include any indication of the method used for excising quartzite, the stone shaped at the workshop, from the quarry, nor of the tools used for this purpose. Only tools for the shaping of stones already removed from the quarry were found at the site, and Holmes cites the lack of domestic refuse or exotic products as evidence that the site was never occupied on a long-term basis. He concludes instead that the site was most likely used on a seasonal basis, with shaped stones being removed for further work or use at other sites.

Holmes includes an illustration of the forms of implements found at the site, using them to create a sequence depicting the process by which they were made. He explains that no complete implements were found, rather that only those discarded due to breakage or a defect in the material were left at the site. Using this information, he concludes that the so-called ‘turtle-backs,’ or roughly shaped stones, commonly found in the District of Columbia were not implements themselves, but instead were a step in process of creating a more refined stone tool.

He also states that the existence of caches of stone blades found in the region are due to the removal of nearly finished blades from quarry workshop sites. These blades were then buried to prevent the stone from becoming too brittle before the artisan completed them using a more delicate process than the free-hand percussion evidenced in the quarry.

Holmes addresses the question of the antiquity of the site as well as who quarried and worked quartzite there. He believes that the evidence shows an extended, unbroken use of the site, and that it does not date to great antiquity. He concludes that the ancestors of the Native American tribes of the region are most likely to have worked this quarry.

Holmes, W. M. A Quarry Workshop of the Flaked-Stone Implement Makers in the District of Columbia. American Anthropologist. 1890 Vol III:1-26.

In this report, W. M. Holmes presents archaeological evidence to support the hypothesis that Native Americans were the first people to inhabit the Washington, D.C. area. He argues that the evidence will shed light on “questions of the early occupation of this country- an occupation believed by many to have preceded that of the Indian.” After digging a trench to the bottom of a site used for the manufacture of lithic artifacts, he argues that there is definite continuity in style and form from the earliest artifacts through to those of historic times and concludes that there is no evidence to support the notion that some other group of people had preceded Native American occupation at the site.

Holmes presents his report in a manner that would be recognizably familiar to modern archaeologists, including a setup of the problem to be explored, a brief history of the site, its geology, the ways and means used to excavate and analyze artifacts, and a conclusion where data is checked against a hypothesis. In fact, a century after his report’s publication, his conclusion still stands,

Holmes discusses why he chose his site (to be representative), gives a geological synopsis (to show that the site has a defined “bottom” under which there are no more artifacts), provides an example of the site’s taphonomy (a graphic representation of strata), and shows how the artifacts were identified (including graphical representations). This background provides the key to interpret his analysis.

Holmes argues that there are recognizable, recurring types of artifacts, all made basically the same way and for the same purpose. He shows that these artifacts are found from the very bottom of the site up through the top, indicating an unbroken chain of craftsmen engaged in a traditional enterprise. He concludes that the evidence found at the site leads naturally to the notion that Native Americans are the original inhabitants of the area.

Holmes begins this article by explaining that, when informed of a rock shelter with pictographs that had been found, he did not expect to find evidence of long occupation there. He states that his investigation bore this assumption out.

A description of the location of the cave, as well as the shape of the cave and the pictographs carved into its walls is provided. The sculptures themselves cover most of the back wall of the recess, although those above and below the main body of carvings could no longer be made out. Those remaining depicted various animals, human heads, animal tracks, and a number of symbols. Sculptures had also been carved on the outside opening of the cave, although only two human figures were still visible. Holmes states that evidence of small stones used to rub out the carving from the cave wall were found on the floor, as were remnants of the red pigmentation used to decorate portions of the carvings.

He explains that there was little evidence of occupation. The fire pit was strewn with fragments of bone, as was the area surrounding it. The deposits of debris left by humans included very little pottery or other culinary articles, and were not stratified, indicating only one period of use.

Holmes concludes that the work was relatively recent, although throughout the article he describes the carvings as being well worn by the ravages of time. He believes that the rock shelter was a retreat for use by priests, and that the carvings were due to ‘superstition.’

In this article, W. H. Holmes describes a rock-shelter in southern Harrison County, Virginia and the petroglyphs found within it. The shelter was well hidden under an outcrop of sandstone. Filling most of the back wall were “rock sculptures,” which together used a space about 20 feet long and four feet wide. The article includes simplified outlines of the engravings. Designs on the back wall included three human skulls, one human face, and a hand, one “obscure” human figure, three birds, three animals that Holmes thought looked like mountain lions, two snakes, two possible turtles, a star, horse track, another track, and “parts of several unidentified creatures.” Two human figures were on the walls outside the rock-shelter. Most figures were of life size (except for the serpents, which were much larger), and “clearly and deeply engraved.” Red coloring, believed by the author to be red hematite, existed on some of the petroglyphs.

The rock shelter floor was excavated by being “trenched transversely” at the exterior base and across the floor. Artifacts were found only within a thin surface deposit of dark earth” and never deeper than a foot. A fire-pit was found near the middle of the shelter, under the apex of the roof. This was about 2 to 3 feet wide and 6 inches deep. Also found were arrow-points (“of usual shape”), bone, unio shells, flint, earthenware, and some tools used on the engravings including bits of red hematite paint stones, and hammer and rubbing stones. The dozen or so fragments of pottery found are described.

Holmes stated that the rock-shelter was remote, not on a “natural thoroughfare,” was not extensively occupied, and may have been the “resort of a chosen few.” The petroglyphs were not made to be “read,” Holmes thought, but existed for spiritual purposes. He also thought the petroglyphs were relatively recent at the time of the writing. He did not connect them with a particular tribe but suggested the petroglyphs had similarities to Algonkian works.

Holmes, William H. Excavations in an Ancient Soapstone Quarry in the District of Columbia. American Anthropologist. October, 1890 Vol. 3 (4): 321-330.

In this paper William H. Holmes hopes that examination of an ancient soapstone quarry within the District of Columbia called Rose Hill Quarry will provide insight into the antiquity of man’s presence there. Located on Connecticut Avenue, four miles from the White House, this site contains steatite, a mineral commonly worked by Native American groups. Unfortunately, Holmes notes that many quarries in the area had been disturbed or decimated by recent mining.

Holmes begins his inquiry by discussing the topographic and geologic features of the site and the surface indications of ancient activity seen in pitting on the summit of the northern hill. Excavation was performed by cross-trenching, till ancient quarry floors were exposed. Once cleared off, Holmes indicates that Native Americans worked these pits two to five feet down. He contends that these ancient quarries were worked for vessel-making material. Pots were fashioned in place within the quarry and detached by under-cutting. Holmes notes that tools available at the time were fairly imprecise, thus leading to breakage and splitting long cleavage planes. The character of broken vessels found at the site made determination of intended shape and utility of vessel difficult. Holmes proceeds to reference the tools recovered from the site, which include angular masses of quartz, cobble-stone, and chisel-like tools.

Holmes finally concludes his paper by examining how this site relates to others in the District, in terms of whether they all came for one group and one age. He suggests that review of the evidence indicates a correspondence between this site and others in the area.

CLARITY RANKING: 4
SHANNA WILLIAMS University of Florida (John Moore)

Holmes, William H. Excavations in an Ancient Soapstone Quarry in the District of Columbia. American Anthropologist October, 1890. Vol.3:321-330.

William H. Holmes describes the results of excavations at the Rose Hill soapstone quarry located in the District of Columbia not far from the Executive Mansion, and draws comparisons with the quartzite boulder quarries nearby, at Piny Branch and Rock Creek. Though steatite, or soapstone, is found in an extensive belt along the mountain slopes of the New England States, the Rose Hill Quarry has the most extensive collection of tools and traces of ancient working. Holmes’ compares these two classes of quarries in order to support the antiquity of man’s presence in America.

Holmes first describes the geological and topographical make-up of the area in which the soapstone quarry is located. Soapstone exposures are found in the bed and on the steep banks of a stream located at the bottom of a ravine as well as at the crest of hills. He describes the pits left behind from years of aboriginal soapstone extraction and the piled fragments of steatite, which create ridges of debris next to the pits. In these ridges were many worked pieces, which were part of unfinished vessels and rejects of all kinds. The process of excavation, the tools used, and the purpose of these sites are all discussed. Holmes’ understanding is that the tools found at the Rose Hill Quarry were used specifically for quarrying. Carving of the soapstone vessels took place in another location. Similarly, the cobblestones from the quartzite quarries were also shaped conveniently for transportation and subsequent finish elsewhere.

Holmes states that it is significant that many village sites in the area have quarry products of both materials, which are freely and intimately associated, indicating that both types of stone were used by these societies. Holmes concludes that the evidence shows many correspondences between the two types of quarries and that it is not possible to discern any significant differences in time, people, and culture.

Holmes, W. H. On the Evolution of Ornament – An American Lesson. American Anthropologist. April, 1890 Vol. 3 (2): 137-146.

In On the Evolution of Ornament – An American Lesson, W.H. Holmes traces the idea of embellishment among native peoples in America. He suggests determination of the origin of embellishment is impossible, since presumably” it came up from the shadows of the pre-human stage of our existence” (137). Yet, he presumes that it began with decoration upon man’s own person and shifted later over to objects. Holmes describes early exercise of decoration not as an intellectual process, but as an instinctive act. He begins exploration of the evolution of ornament within this elementary period, where he suggests the phenomena were simple and homogeneous. In America, Holmes claims textile and fictile arts proliferated the early stages of ornament evolution. Elements of decoration used in these arts were of geometric origin and were followed later by non-geometric designs derived from nature. These elements were subject to the mechanical forces of the art being preformed and the aesthetic forces of the human mind.

Holmes then proceeds to ask two questions: How do the mechanical processes of decoration develop into highly constituted forms: and, What role do nature-derived elements take in producing corresponding results? In considering the first question, Holmes notes that uniformity and symmetry are inherent in the early process of the arts. Thus, aggregation or separation of lines or rows was produced. Yet, he suggests that determination of a particular design of highly constituted form is impossible since time has obliterated the steps of progress. Hence, only general tendencies and laws concerning this phenomenon can be constructed. In response to Holmes second question he contends representations of nature originated from primarily superstitious and aesthetic motives. These designs begin as highly delineated elaborations that with time became simplified into conventional conditions due to general restrictions of the techniques employed in the art form. Thus, Holmes suggests animate forms were acted upon by mechanical forces of art and became gradually reduced to purely geometric shapes.

CLARITY RANKING: 2
SHANNA WILLIAMS University of Florida (John Moore)

Holmes, W. H. On the Evolution of Ornament – An American Lesson. American Anthropologist April 1980. Vol. III:137-146.

Holmes is particularly interested in the evolution of surface decoration and embellishment of handicrafts in what he terms “advanced cultures.” He states that patterns found in textile arts such as the herringbone, the chevron, the guilloche, the meander, the fret and the scroll were probably the result of a complex evolution, which began as an instinctive act. He believes that possession of some form of artistic sense is a universal feature of human societies.

In the beginning, in what he calls “the primitive state,” ornamentation is simple in content, idea and processes used. The first steps in this evolutionary sequence are invariably geometric designs. Because the methods used to produce an item inevitably limit expression of ideas, qualities such as order, uniformity and symmetry came first, especially in textile art. For example, in the textile art of Peru, technical restrictions in cloth production resulted in symbolic representations of birds that could be incorporated into the cloth as purely geometric features.

Geometric design elements like the fret and the scroll were also used extensively by American tribes along the lower Mississippi and the Colorado plateau. In both places, these figures evolved from very simple to more complex forms as the actual process of producing the item progressed and the mind of the individual producing it allowed. In the end, Holmes asserts, “aesthetic forces” of the human mind coupled with a universal desire to elaborate existing ornamentation have caused art to progress.

In Aboriginal Fire-Making, Walter Hough examines the fire-making techniques employed by various groups. Hough begins his paper by briefly noting the multitude of fire-origin myths that have been collected from vastly different cultures over the years. He presumes that all of these myths refer to the creation of some method of simplified fire procurement. Thus, these myths might provide insight into primitive fire-making apparatus.

Hough then proceeds to the body of his paper, which explores friction-based methods of fire-making. He divides these methods into four groups, in terms of his presumed order of development. He begins with friction on wood using a reciprocating motion, then friction on wood employing a sawing motion, friction on wood utilizing plowing or planning motion, and finally friction using minerals. Hough suggests that the presence of groups retaining the use of the wooden apparatus despite knowledge of quicker methods is the result of religious influences and respect for old customs.

Using drawings and descriptive analysis, Walter Hough outlines the different methods used around the world to create fire utilizing wood as one of the primary materials. He begins with fire creation by friction with sticks of wood, then the two-handed fire drill, mouth fire drill, pump-drill, fire saw, fire sticks and rotary drill to name a few. Walter Hough ends his paper by examining pyrites and flint methods of fire-making, which he contends are selected for later in societal development.

Walter Hough compares and describes many methods of making fire used in native cultures, and places each method on an evolutionary scale. His order of cultural development is based on ease of starting a fire, complexity of the method, and the knowledge required. Drawings of the methods are included.

He describes a “simple two-stick method” where one stick is spun between the palms of the hand, while pushing down and “drilling” it into another piece of wood that generally contains a notch. He rates this as the lowest level of development. People using this method are “Indians of North Central, and South America; Ainos, Japan; Somalis, Africa; most Australians.” This “is the most widespread method.”

The Eskimo mouth drill and the Eskimo two-handed drill are in the next level of development according to Hough. Both are similar to the last method, but include more parts, and are able to start fires more quickly. Both methods put weight on the spinning stick with another stick and have a bow or cord wrapped around it to spin it faster. The author can start a fire in less then 10 minutes with this method. Amongst those who used this method are “Eskimos, some Indians, Hindoos, and Dyaks.”

Hugh gives the Iroquois pump-drill the next highest rating up the evolutionary ladder. Though this is still a “drilling” method , the spinning stick is weighted and spun like a child’s top.

Two other wooden fire starting techniques include a fire saw consisting of two pieces of bamboo and the Polynesian plowing method where one stick is run back and forth along a groove in another stick. Among those who used the fire saw were “Malyans and Burmese” while “Polynesians” and “some Australians” used the plowing method. Hough found these as the simplest method among the Polynesians. Finally, Hough briefly describes the flint and pyrite method. Hough writes that the pyrites method could not exist in “a very primitive state of society” because of the required “preparation and preservation of timber” needed to start fire with that method.

Hough’s analysis is a straightforward evolutionary orientation. He concludes that “three stages of culture may be defined by the kind of fire-apparatus used: I. Savages make fire with two pieces of wood; 2. Barbarians with flint and steel or pyrites; 3. Civilized man by chemistry.”

In The Olecranon Perforation Dr. D.S. Lamb examines the presentation of this particular feature among various species and possible explanations for its occurrence. An olecranon perforation is a foramen existing at the distal portion of the humerus where the ulna’s olecranon process articulates with the humerus. Based on skeletal collections and data from other researchers, Lamb contends that this perforation is found in variable numbers for different racial groups and when found seems to be predominately located on the left humerus. Lamb claims this feature is found in greater frequency among prehistoric skeletons and the “lower races”, which may reflect their delayed development. Much of the data concerning human olecranon foramen seems to be taken from a data pool too small to draw any general conclusions. The same can be said for data concerning other members of the family Hominidae and Pongidae. The data suggests the foramen is only found in Mammalia and is present in dogs, some rodents, pigs, and antelope.

Lamb contends that the foramen is not, as has been presumed by some, the result of want of ossification, but is instead the result of atrophy after ossification. Citing the remarks of Dr. Harrison Allen, Lamb suggests the foramen is produced by impact pressure accompanying progression upon the ground or as Dr. J.L. Wortman proposes, is due to extreme extension of forearm in a nearly straight line leading to atrophy of the olecranon fossa by the olecranon process of the ulna. In animals such as the dog, pig and hyena feeding is accomplished by placement of the forelimbs upon the morsel and tearing or pulling by the mouth, thus leading to this straight-line posture. The particular gait of the prong-horned antelope assumes this posture as well.

While these explanations seem reasonable for the aforementioned animals, they do not explain the presence of the foramen in Hominidae, who do not assume such postures. Thus, the explanation for the presence of olecranon foramen and its greater frequency on the left side in humans remains in Lamb’s opinion an enigma.

In The Olecranon Perforation, Dr. D. S. Lamb presents an 1890s medical mystery. An olecranon perforation, also called a foramen, is a naturally occurring hole that appears in some, but not all mammalian humuri. Strangely, it is noted with considerable frequency in the bones of “ancient peoples” but is rare among more modern remains. Lamb presents evidence and offers a possible explanation.

The first part the article presents the facts, as far as they are known, for human populations. He notes that these perforations occur widely in “ancient” indigenous remains, but only rarely in modern indigenous or Euro-American populations. The perforations seem to be more prevalent on the left side and occur in both sexes as well as adolescent specimens. Lamb suggests the perforations may be linked to function.

Lamb argues that these perforations, “…increase the flexion or extension of the forearm.” He suggests that some set of behaviors creates the perforation. In order to examine this possibility, he examines a wider group of mammals.

Lamb presents a list of the frequencies of perforations in other mammals. He notes whether perforations are absent, rare, common, frequent, or constant within a given species. He then offers the opinions of two of his contemporaries as to why they occur widely in some but only rarely, or never, in other species.

Dr. Harrison Allen argues for a connection between the perforation and behavior but cites a lack of evidence, or too much contradictory evidence, to make any sound conclusions. On the contrary, Dr. J. L. Wortman argues that plenty of evidence exists to make the connection. In the end, Lamb tends to agree more with Wortman but, significantly, does not propose his own explanation for the perforation’s frequency in ancient populations, preferring instead to, “…submit the case in its present shape.”

Most of this article is dedicated to a physical description of the stone monuments found in southwestern Minnesota and northwestern Iowa, as well as their locations. The monuments are comprised of stones laid out to form various shapes. Most of the monuments described are circles made with an outline of stones of sizes varying from monument to monument. There are, however, also outlines that form whole or partial animals, the only complete animal described being that of a buffalo. The third type of monument is again a circle, although these Lewis terms ‘pavements’ as the area described by the outline is also filled with small, closely fitted stones.

Lewis explains that in many cases stones have been removed from the monuments by settlers for other purposes, although some can still be identified as the imprints left by larger stones in the ground are still visible. He also describes the relationship of several of the monuments to nearby mounds, although he does not elaborate on possible meanings.

The article is left somewhat open-ended, with no suggestion as to who made these monuments or what they were used for. Lewis offers only that he does not believe they were made by the Sioux, and that they were not formed by the removal of stones used to hold down tents, as this would not leave a symmetrical, unbroken circle.

In this article, the author, T. H. Lewis, provides detailed descriptions of the “bowlder outline figures” found in Big Sioux Valley, Iowa, and Coteau Des Prairies, Minnesota. He describes the formations as being constructed from boulders arranged in lines that trace designs over the ground. The designs are primarily circles in the Iowa site; and at the Minnesota site there is an outline of a buffalo. Lewis carefully details the number of boulders used, their weight and the shape of each design.

Lewis visited Big Sioux Valley and Coteau Des Prairies in the summer of 1889. This article is an account of notes made during that time. He also uses this article to correct an omission in his original paper, read before the Anthropological Society of Washington in February, 1889, regarding information from J. N. Nicollet who had visited southern Minnesota in 1838 and had mentioned these stone formations in his report printed in 1845. Nicollett’s descriptions of the circles, that he thought were built by the Sioux, and an effigy of a man made from stones in the Coteau region (marked on his map as “Stone Man”) are quoted at length. Unfortunately, Nicollet never actually said that he himself saw the Stone Man and his map does not show the route to the location. Lewis disputes Nicollett’s “hasty” attribution of these figures to the Sioux, claiming that they predate Sioux occupancy. Lewis had searched for the Stone Man without success yet believed it had once existed based on an account by a Mr. Casey, considered a reliable witness. According to Lewis, the painter George Catlin also visited the monument in 1936.

In conclusion, Lewis considers whether the figures had practical uses for the Indians. For example, the boulders could have been used to hold down the edges of their tents. However, he rejects this explanation by noting that when removing the tents the stones would have been randomly scattered instead of laid in their neat patterns. In addition, some of the stone circles are either much too large or too small for any tent or teepee.

This article was informative and easy to read. The author provides a diagram of the Buffalo of Murray Co., Minnesota.

In Customs of Courtesy Garrick Mallory examines the evolution of ceremonial customs from their original deliberate conventions to their now trivial forms. Mallery begins by debunking the common belief that customs are preformed because of their inherent and absolute rightness or that certain races of men have inherent idiosyncrasies associated with them. Instead of looking for an explanation of customs among races, Mallery suggests that one should instead look to habitat and history for custom origins. The writer examines custom origins in terms of verbal forms of salutation. He divides these forms into four groups: 1, those of religious character; 2, those which salute a person’s health or well-being in the form of a prayer; 3, those wishing well-being without direct invocation of a deity; and, 4, the expression of official or personal affection or respect. Mallery used Israeli, Arabian, Latin, English, French, Chinese, and North American Indian salutations to support his positions.

Over the years many of these salutations have lost their original formal nature due to over usage and changes in societal structure. Now, Mallery claims, people generally use a condensed often-meaningless formula that makes no distinction between persons saluting and the saluted or their respective status. Thus, Mallery asserts that the evolution of salutation is the transition from egotism and superstition to a simplified and often perfunctory form of recognition.

Mallery presents a theoretical overview of the nature of personal greeting, asserting that, “a thing is not now and never has been customarily done because it is intrinsically right.” He reasons that all of the interactions which we exchange on a mundane, everyday level originated within the context of a specific history and are not, in and unto themselves, polite. Rather, they are the “natural and slow product of the forces gradually developing social life.”

Mallery views humans as empirical beings, arguing that even seemingly inescapable behavior patterns such as “hello/goodbye” have sustained the tests of time only by proving good and useful. While “how d’you do” may not, in actuality, be a sincere request for information, such trivialities could serve as “watchwords or countersigns to indicate that the parties meeting are on good terms.” Mallery’s explanations are grounded in an evolutionary perspective; what lasts throughout time is that which has adapted most efficiently to the surrounding environment.

Because Mallery could not possibly encompass all of the aspects of courtesy in one article, he focused on the greeting form, which he divided into four categories: greetings of a purely religious character; greetings in the form of a prayer for the well-being of the person saluted; those that invoke health and prosperity without the invocation of a deity; and those expressing personal affection or respect. Much of the article consists of myriad examples which illustrate these categories. Mallery includes a diverse range of cultures; traditions from France, the Orient, Polynesia, Tyrol, Africa, Germany, Egypt, England and North Carolina are compared.

An interesting note is made of the deprecatory responses offered by certain peoples when they are praised for health or success. Mallery ascribes this to superstition that malign entities, jealous of a mortal’s success, would interfere with it. He further postulates that perhaps the “polite avoidance of boasting” in modern society has similar origins.

In this article Garrick Mallery recounts the Abnaki folk tale of ‘The Fight with the Giant Witch.’ Acquired from the wife of a superintendent of the Passamaquoddy branch of the Abnaki at its reservation, Mallory uses this myth to refute the work of Charles J. Leland. Leland published Algonquin Legends, which Mallory claims reflects the Abnaki people as particularly violent. He insists that a full collection of their myths would not support Leland’s position, and reflects the Abnaki’s gentler demeanor in the aforementioned myth.

The Passamaquoddy myth tells the tale of the Giant Witch who kills all of the best warriors in a native village. The chief gathers a council of his most powerful witches to battle this evil force. One by one, the witches use the forces of nature against the Giant Witch only to be defeated. Finally only one witch remains, Wild Goose, who is a quiet and clever fellow. Wild Goose concocts a play in which his guardian spirit transforms itself into a beautiful woman and lures Giant Witch from his lair. Once away from the safety of his cave, Wild Goose splits the Giant Witch’s head open with a stone hatchet and forces him to reveal how to resurrect the dead warriors. Once Wild Goose follows the Giant Witch’s instructions, the warriors are resurrected and peace befalls the land.

Mallory uses this story to reflect the overall benevolent nature of the Abnaki. Yet, the myth alone seems unconvincing in conveying his point. The myth contains numerous examples of violence, seeming to make this tale a bad example of Abnaki gentleness. Mallory’s positions would have been much more persuasive had he provided more conclusive evidence and commentary to support his point.

Garrick Mallery provides a detailed account of an Abnaki myth or folk-tale, presenting it as an actual story of good versus evil within the cultural framework of the Abnaki Indians. Mallery’s main goal in writing is to contradict a previous collection of articles by Leland that depicted the Abnaki Indian myths as largely “harsh and violent in character.” After spending two field-seasons with the Abnaki Indians, Mallery contends that the Abnaki Indians do not exhibit harsh or violent behavior and, in fact, have always had a history of being gentler than most Indian tribes.

This Abnaki myth tells the story of a Keewauk-M-telolen (translated as Giant Witch) who lives in the interior of a great mountain, not far from a village whose chief is Hass-ag-wauk. In this myth poohegans (otherwise known as attendant daimons or guardian spirits) carry out visions as foretold in dreams. The poohegan are generally the archetypes of animals, with the exception of one poohegan, known to the Indians as “thought.” The myth tells of battles between the ‘giant witch’ and ten great witches from the nearby village. Both the “giant witch” and the ten great witches have active poohegan that are called upon to assist in the battles. The author gives detailed accounts of dreams that foretell the future, the importance of using the poohegan, and the elaborate roles they play on behalf of the witch.

This myth is one of many collected by Mr. Brown, who served for many years as the superintendent of the Passamaquode branch of the Abnaki reservation.

Mason, Otis T. Anthropology in Paris During the Exposition of 1889. American Anthropologist January, 1890 Vol.3:27-36.

Mason takes on the task of detailing the activities of the anthropologists attending the Congress in Paris in 1889. He begins with a description of museums and exhibits of interest to anthropologists in Paris and the surrounding region, as well as who conducted the tours through each collection. Specifically highlighted are the St. Germain Museum with a display of Stone Age archaeology; the Palais Thermes and Hotel de Cluny with Roman archaeology as well as Roman, medieval, and Renaissance artwork; the Palais de Justice, which included displays on anthropometry and demography; the Jardin des Plantes with exhibits on osteology and the natural history of humankind; the MusJe Trocadero with artwork of modern cultures displayed by geographic region; and the MusJe Guimet, which included an exhibit depicting the history of religions around the world.

Mason also states which nationalities were represented by anthropologists, and goes on to comment on the anthropological nature of the 1889 French Exposition, which is described as having displays representing the housing, clothing, and food of various cultures around the world. He concludes with a list of topics addressed by the Congress, which include geological activity; Stone Age arts; the chronology of the Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages; the relationships between various civilizations; and the comparison of cranial and skeletal remains of human groups of the Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages in western and central Europe.

This article is essentially a review of the anthropologically relevant exhibits and presentations at the Exposition held in Paris in 1889. Mason enthusiastically describes the wide array of handcrafts, tools, dance and theatre presented by the natives of several different African countries and French colonies. He also describes models of different types of habitation that had been constructed along the Esplanade des Invalides: “rock shelters, igloos, wigwams, bark lodges [and] straw hovels.” In one building, life size representations of ethnic groups depicted such scenes as Cro-Magnon families carving Paleolithic instruments, Mexicans working with agave fiber, and Greeks making Etruscan pottery. It is clear that anthropology was a new, exciting, and exotic field to be involved in at the time.

Throughout the article, Mason gives the reader a simulated tour through the wonders that Paris had to offer: the art museums, the palaces with their great historic collections, and the galleries full to bursting with relics from the Middles Ages and the Renaissance. He also itemizes current anthropological publications and the topics included in the tenth annual meeting of the International Congress of Anthropology and Prehistoric Archaeology. Apparently the level of discussion between specialists was stimulating and enlightening, and held “not always with perfect unanimity.” Mason insists that this 1889 Exposition was the most “thoroughly anthropological” of any held yet, and that “if the anthropologists did not organize the great Exposition they at least furnished the presiding genius.” He gives Paris a great deal of credit for providing an atmosphere where the human arts held such priority. In conclusion he puts forth an invitation to rejoin on American soil in 1892 for another Exposition, noting that “so many problems of interest to the whole anthropologic world” are to be found in America as well.

In Writing Materials and Books Among the Ancient Romans, A. P. Montague examines his subject in terms of materials used as paper, ink, pen and pencil, and books utilized by the ancient Romans. The materials used as paper for the ancient Romans included Egyptian papyrus, animal skins, and wooden tablets covered with wax. Montague delves into the preparation techniques for each material and how they were used based on testimony from several historians and historic records.

Next, Montague explores ink employed by the ancient Romans. The Romans had various colors of ink available for use including, black, red, purple, green, and even invisible ink. Materials such as wine, soot with burned resin or pitch, black matter emitted by the cuttle-fish, red lead, fresh milk and the milk sap of certain plants were made into ink. Pens used in ancient Rome had the same shape as old-fashioned quill pens and an iron instrument called a stilus was used to scratch on waxen tablets.

There was regular trade in books in Cicero’s time. If a book was in high demand copyists dictated it. These copyists were usually slaves or foreigners and the books copied by them often contained many mistakes. Those too poor to purchase books were able to read them thanks to public libraries. Several public and private libraries were found adorned with busts of eminent men or statuettes of Minerva and the Muses. In this paper, A.P. Montague reflects the vast array of materials and techniques available to Romans during this time period, in terms of writing materials and books.

Montague not only describes the materials used by the Ancient Romans for writing, such as papyrus, parchment and wooden tablets, but also provides a history of their use, summarizes how they were used and their methods of production. He includes anecdotes about writing materials, ending with a section on books and public libraries. A bibliography is not provided, but he includes references from other authors, as well as specific historical references. Although it is unclear where his expertise comes from, his descriptions are very thorough and detailed.

Montague is obviously fascinated with the subject of ancient Roman writing and the anecdotes he includes make for very interesting reading. For example, re-use of parchment made from skin was very common. It can be written on and then washed off, and then used and reused, again and again. Montague describes how monks in the middle ages realized that traces of the original writing were still visible and developed ways to recover it using certain chemicals. This was how “The Institutes,” a famous legal treatise by Gaius, was found in 1816. Portions of the Bible were also found under some late Greek writings.

Montague has a wealth of information about types and colors of inks used as well. For example, Ancient Romans used invisible or “sympathetic” ink that could only be brought out by the use of heat or chemicals. Montague doesn’t indicate what they used it for, but he does note that “lovers” used fresh milk as their ink because it remained invisible until coal dust was sprinkled on it. Colored ink was highly regulated. For instance, a specific type of red ink that was very expensive to manufacture, was restricted by law for use only by the Roman Emperors and their nearest relatives.

In this article, Mooney relates notes obtained from Col. Z. A. Rice on the Cosumnes of California in AD 1850. He does not explain whether what is listed below is a summary, copy, or interpretation of the original notes, nor does he explain in what manner the notes were obtained other than to state that Col. Rice lived in an area near this tribe for a number of years. Additionally, there are references within the article that compare the Cosumnes to grazing cattle and devils; name the soup prepared by the Cosumnes as a “mess;” and state that it is “natural” that the women demonstrate grief more readily than the men. Mooney does not clarify whether these statements are his own opinions and conclusions, or are simply taken out of the original notes as such.

The notes include a variety of brief descriptions of many facets of life among the Cosumnes. Mooney begins with a short description of the bark houses, as well as the axes used in obtaining the bark. The weapons of the Cosumnes are stated to be the bow and stone-tipped arrows, while women are said to weave conical grass baskets both for carrying water and food items. They are noted to consume a wide variety of food, although only pine nuts, clover, grizzly bear, grasshoppers, rabbit, wild oats, and greens are specifically mentioned.

Mooney also describes two food-gathering techniques, those used in obtaining pine nuts, as well as the controlled burns used in what is termed the grasshopper hunt, in which women collect grasshoppers and men hunt various small game. He also explains the roasting festivities following the grasshopper hunt, as well as a festival at which there is dancing and music. Following this is a somewhat more detailed description of the foot-ball game, at which Mooney states there is betting and gambling.

He concludes the article with an extremely brief description of the sun as possibly being the central deity among the Cosumnes, as well as their burial practices and related mourning customs.

Mooney, James. Notes on the Cosumnes Tribes of California. The American Anthropologist. July, 1890 Vol. III:259-262.

This article is a first-hand descriptive account of the Cosumne Indians of the Sacramento basin in California as told to the author by Colonel Z. A. Rice of Atlanta, Georgia, who went to California in 1850 and spent several years near the tribe. No bibliography is provided.

According to Col. Rice, the Cosumnes’ wore little clothing except for festive or ceremonial occasions. Ornamentation was mostly nose and ear rings made of paint, shell and stone beads. Homes were constructed of bark stripped from trees with hatchets. The usual weapons were bows and arrows made by the men, and finely woven, conical baskets were made by the women and used for holding water or gathering seeds and grasshoppers. The Cosumnes kept dogs as hunting companions, as was common with most Indians.

A very detailed list of food items is provided, including pine nuts, clover, grizzly bears, grasshoppers and wild oats. A “grasshopper hunt” and the methods of food preparation following the hunt are described in detail.

Col. Rice attended a dance held near Fiddletown in 1851 and witnessed a variety of circle dances that included both women wearing terrapin shell leggings and men holding bows and arrows. Singing, stamping to shake their shell leggings, and drumming were all part of the dances. The drum was a half-section of hollowed-out log on which men stood and stamped. A game of “foot-ball,” described by the colonel as more of a “foot-race,” was part of the activities along with gambling on the game’s outcome. The game was played by two groups of young men, each with a ball they kicked along a track. Team members all had a turn at kicking the ball down the track. One player from each team would line up and the first player to get his ball between the goalposts won that round. Scores were kept till all the players competed.

The principal deity was the sun and women had a prayer ceremony similar to the Sun Dance of upper Missouri tribes. The female petitioner would take her position at daybreak, sitting on the ground praying the entire day, turning her body so it always faced the sun. Burials were usually done south of the Moquelumne River though there were occasional scaffold burials.

Though article is very clear and easy to read, it refers to Indians as primitives and its condescending tone is highly ethnocentric.

Mooney discusses various aspects of a ball game played by the Cherokee, focusing mainly on a description of the dance ceremony that takes place the night before a game. He claims that this ball game is common to all tribes from California to Maine to the Gulf Coast, differing only in such details as the number of sticks used for play and whether women are allowed to be players or not. He also states that Raquette and La Crosse are two European derivatives of the game. Mooney denies that the discussion of the history of the game is his purpose, although he includes two stories of games in the past which paint the tribes involved as alternately treacherous and incompetent. The theme of Native Americans being inferior to Europeans runs quite blatantly throughout the entire article.

Mooney focuses on the ball game amongst the Cherokee, and includes a myth concerning the ball game that explains the origin of two flying creatures that are not birds, the flying squirrel and the bat. Both of these creatures are associated with skillful ball play.

The game itself is said to be played by young men who train diligently and are regarded as something akin to professional ball players, with renown for great skill being nearly as great a distinction as the fame accorded an accomplished warrior. Shamans are also described as being vital to the game itself, directing its course as well as performing the proper rituals before and during the game.

The bulk of Mooney’s writing focuses on the dance leading up to the ball game; it begins shortly after dark on the evening before the game and lasts all night. The ritual dancing includes a ceremony Mooney refers to as ‘going to water,’ which is performed several times during the night as well as a number of times during the journey from the dance location to the game field. The ‘going to water’ ceremony is described as a process by which the shamans seek favor for the players of their settlement and misfortune for the players of the opposing settlement.

The dancing ends around sunrise, and the players and shamans arrive at the field of play after noon. At the field there is an ordeal of scratching, during which the players are ritually scratched across most portions of their exposed body, and after which the rite of ‘going to water’ is performed for the final time before the game.

The field itself is described as a level area near the river with a goal post at either end. The first team to score 12 home runs at the appropriate goal post is declared the winner, and claims the goods that were bet on the game’s outcome. An equal number of players from each team participate, and Mooney states that the number is generally between nine and twelve. The game is further described as rough, with accidents being common.

After the final goal has been scored, the winning team ‘goes to water’ a last time to divert the revengeful incantations of the losing team. The players then dress and break their fast, which has been held since sundown the previous evening.

This article by James Mooney provides a detailed description of ball play among the Cherokee people. It begins with a discussion of the history of the game and a comparative overview of its variations in different regions, among different groups of Indians. Most Native American groups played this type of ball game, but the rules varied by region. Northern and western tribes used only one ball stick to play the game, and in the Gulf States, two sticks were used. The data for this article came from Mooney’s direct observation of Cherokee during several seasons of ball play.

According to Mooney, the game, called anetsa, was very important to the Cherokee way of life. Myths, ceremonies and songs were all associated with the game. In one myth, the animals played a ball game against the birds. The game itself was played from the middle of the summer until it would begin to get cold outside in the late fall or early winter. Before the games began, the players would go through athletic training and rituals. These rituals involved keeping certain foods, such as rabbit, out of the diet, avoiding contact with women, and dancing. Rituals could last from a week up to 28 days. By Mooney’s era, the ball used in the game was covered by leather, but he claims that deerskin was used in the past. The Cherokee used two sticks to play the game; each about three feet long and shaped like wooden spoons. They were formed by tying a bowl to a hickory stick with squirrel skin or Indian hemp. The players caught the ball by using the bowls of both sticks. The ball play dance would be held the night before the game. It lasted all night long, and the players were not allowed to eat throughout the event. Both the men and women participated in the dance.

Immediately before the game began, the players would strip down to being nearly naked, and were scratched on their arms and legs by a kanaga, a comb with seven teeth made from sharp turkey bone. The costume that they wore involved a pair of short trunks, and a feather charm for their head. After getting dressed, the players went to the river to conduct a final prayer. The spectators placed bets on the outcome of the game. The game was played on a level field, with goals on each side. The ball could only be picked up by the sticks, and a foul was called if it was picked up by the hands. To win, a team must score twelve goals. During the game, the players were allowed to drink a juice made from green grapes and crabapples.

Mooney’s article provides a very detailed description of the practices surrounding the game, and clearly shows that anetsa was not simply a recreational pastime.

Murdoch, John Notes on Counting and Measuring among the Eskimo of Point Barrow. American Anthropologist. January, 1890 Vol. 3 (1): 37-44.

As a member of the International Polar Expedition, John Murdoch spent time among the Eskimo at Cape Smyth and Point Barrow, Arctic Alaska between 1881 and 1883. In Notes on Counting and Measuring Among the Eskimo of Point Barrow, Murdoch discusses information on the numeral system used by these people. He begins his paper by noting the scarce amount of interaction these people have had with Western culture, which had occurred only within the last thirty years prior to his research. Thus, he suggests little has changed in their culture and language from its original form.

Through his research, Murdoch has discovered that the language spoken at Point Barrow is similar to that of the Greenlanders and other Eastern Eskimo. The chief phonetic difference between these two dialects is that vowel sounds are often different, a surd consonant in Greenlandic is represented by the cognate nasal among the Eskimo of Point Barrow, and “the “fricative lingual” ss (pronounced sh or like the French j) of the Greenlandic becomes a true rolled r (38).”

Murdoch notes that the lack of numeric reference in ordinary conversation makes an accurate account of the Point Barrow counting method difficult. Generally numbers above five are spoken of as amadráktfk- “many”. There are numerals as high as one hundred, though these are rarely used. The words for numbers one through five and ten are the same as Greenlandic “real numbers”. The remaining numbers are conveyed by repeating these aforementioned numerals in concert with “part words”, which indicate which hand or foot counting is done on. While Murdoch notes that these “part-words” may have not been accurately acquired, the word akb0’n0g0n means “on the second hand ” or “on the next hand or foot.” For example, seven would be expressed as “madro’n Z akb0’n0g0n” or “three times on the next.”

Using this system, Murdoch suggests arithmetical processes, while difficult, are not impossible. The Eskimo of Point Barrow are capable of crude addition, since they divide objects into groups of five and calculate sum based on the number of these groups.

Furthermore, Murdoch suggests these people have no words in their vocabulary for measuring space that have not been acquired from Western sources. Time is measured by the location of the sun or phases of the moon and the year is divided into three seasons or nine lunar months oriented around work activities and festivals. Words exist for “today”, “tomorrow” and “yesterday”, while longer periods in the past are given a generic term aipnni (literally, “in the other time”). This vagueness made it impossible for Murdoch to learn the date of any event in Point Barrow history before the time of Western presence.

Overall, John Murdoch’s paper is well written and insightful on the numeric system of the Point Barrow Eskimos.

CLARITY RANKING: 4
SHANNA WILLIAMS University of Florida (John Moore)

Murdoch, John. Notes on Counting and Measuring Among the Eskimo of Point Barrow. American Anthropologist January, 1890. Vol.3:37-43.

John Murdoch describes the counting and measuring system used by Eskimo of Cape Smyth and Point Barrow. He compares this system with that of the Greenlanders and other eastern Eskimo, finding that the systems are similar in many ways and probably closely related. He found himself stationed in Arctic Alaska as a member of the International Polar Expedition and thus became intimately acquainted with the inhabitants of the area.

The counting system at Point Barrow is based on six “real numbers” and the use of hands and feet to count further. There are specific words for the first five numerals and the tenth numeral. Ordinarily, numbers higher than six are said to be “asamadraktuk,” or “many.” Though use of other numbers is not common, any other number can be established by stating which hand, how many hands, which foot, and/or how many feet. For example, in translation, six would be said “five (and) once on the next,” indicating the number five plus one on the next hand. The number nine is formed differently, “that which has not its ten.” Twenty is translated as “a man completed,” recognizing that counting this number uses all of the fingers and toes of one man. Murdoch compares the words used by the Eskimo and the Greenlanders and comments on Eskimo disinterest in mathematical calculations. Terms for ordinal numbers (first, second, third…) are also provided.

Murdoch continues with an explanation of measuring systems used by this group of Eskimo. They have learned to use the fathom to measure calico and drilling. Time is measured by the sun, the moon, and the stars. Months are named after seasonal events and activities. Murdoch provides extensive linguistic documentation. He clearly considers the counting and measuring systems to be quite “primitive,” though he acknowledges that they work efficiently for the specific needs of this culture.

Murdoch, John. The History of the ‘Throwing-Stick’ Which Drifted from Alaska to Greenland. American Anthropologist July, 1890 Vol.3:233-236.

In this article, Murdoch examines the origin of an artifact found among driftwood on the coast of Greenland. He calls the artifact a throwing stick, although later in the article discusses other possible names for it, concluding that harpoon thrower would be more suitable, as that is what the artifact would have been used for.

Murdoch provides a description of the harpoon thrower based upon a sketch sent to him by Dr. Rink, who found the artifact, although he does not include the sketch with the article. He explains that this form of harpoon thrower is not found in Greenland, instead being similar in shape, features, and ornamentation to those found in several areas of Alaska, most particularly Kaviak Peninsula.

Dr. Rink is said to believe the evidence is inconclusive, as nothing is known of the form harpoon throwers take among native groups living north of latitude 68 in Greenland. Murdoch states that this lack of knowledge is inconsequential, claiming that the likelihood of a highly specialized form of harpoon thrower in two widely distant regions is negligible.

Murdoch concludes that the harpoon thrower drifted across the Arctic Ocean from Alaska to reach the coast of Greenland, citing as further evidence that the information available in 1890 on the currents in the ocean are known to conduct debris in this manner.

Murdoch, John. The History of the “Throwing-Stick” which Drifted from Alaska to Greenland. American Anthropologist July 1890 Vol. III:233-235.

While walking among piles of driftwood along the coast of Greenland, Dr. Rink stumbled across a remarkable find: a painted stick inlaid with intricate beading. Being an expert on Eskimo culture, Dr. Rink recognized the artifact as a throwing-stick in the Alaskan Inuit tradition, used in a variety of games. The question was: how did it get to the coast of Greenland?

The case attracted attention of Danish and Norwegian journals, including Naturen, but received little notice in America. The throwing-stick was decorated unlike any known throwing-sticks used by early peoples of Greenland, but it exactly resembled models from Alaska. The most recognizable Alaskan feature was a “pocket” for the forefinger and a peg for another finger to rest on. The stick was decorated with inlaid beads, another definitive feature of an Alaskan throwing-stick. Murdoch identified the stick as originating in the Kaviak Peninsula, Norton Sound and the Yukon Delta.

Dr. Frithiof Nansen, who had some expertise on the subject of native artifacts due to his extensive expeditions across Greenland, hypothesized that the throwing-stick drifted on ice westward from the Bering Strait onto the west coast of Greenland, passing over the North Pole. This hypothesis was based on knowledge of oceanic currents at this time, which supported the possibility of such a vast voyage.

CLARITY: 4
AMBER GIBBON Southern Oregon University (Anne Chambers)

Stearns, Robert. On the Nishinam Game of “Ha” and the Boston Game of “Props”. American Anthropologist October, 1890 Vol.3:353-358.

Stearns’ main concern in this article is determining the origin of the games ‘ha’ and ‘props’. Ha was played among the Nishinam tribe of interior northern California, while props was played among boys and men of Boston. Both were dice games with identical rules, although the Nishinam used split and painted acorns for dice while cut cowry shells filled with sealing wax were used as dice in props. Stearns poses the question of whether the two games developed independently or whether one group invented it and taught it to the other.

Stearns states that no version of the game was found among native groups living along the coast of California, and that props existed in Boston before the gold rush to the west coast in the mid-1800s. The fur-trade, which was centered in Boston at the time props was prevalent, brought sailors inland, to the interior of California long before the gold rush. Stearns thus concludes that the game was invented among the Nishinam and taught to American fur traders.

The fur traders altered the nature of the dice owing to materials available at sea, although Stearns attributes this to his assumption of the superior intellect of whites rather than the need to make due with what was at hand. As a final piece of evidence that the game was introduced to Americans by the Nishinam, Stearns states that props was only played in Boston and surrounding areas of Massachusetts where the monopoly on fur trade with the Pacific Northwest was held.

Stearns, Robert E.C. On the Nishinam Game of “Ha” and the Boston Game of “Props.” American Anthropologist October, 1890. Vol. 3:353-358.

Robert Stearn looks at Stephen Powers’ description of the Nishinam game of Ha and compares it to the Boston game of Props. Powers’ descriptions were developed for the U.S. Geological Survey, while Stearn’s purpose is not stated.

The rules of Ha and Props are the same. The only difference between these games are the objects used for game pieces. The Nishinam used halved acorns with one painted side, while boys in Boston used cowry shells filled with red sealing wax. The idea of the game is to throw four game pieces and count up your points, which depend upon the combination of the game pieces. Whoever has the most points at the end of a round gets a reward and the game continues. After the designated number of rounds is complete, the players add up their rewards and determine a winner.

Props became a popular gambling game in Boston and men played for money. Eventually, the game was prohibited and made unlawful because professional gamblers were using “loaded” props to cheat. Players would fill the cowry shells with lead and cover the lead with wax. When these pieces were thrown, they would always land on a specific side so a person would win every time.

Stearn is interested in the origin of these games, asking who played the game first and was it developed independently? His answer is rather complex and circumstantial. Stearn determines that fur traders, who spent many years traveling up and down the west coast, learned the game from the Nishinam people of northern California. He draws this connection through his knowledge that the first fur traders of the west coast came from Boston. He felt that if the players of Boston would have learned it first, they would have first taught the coastal tribes of California, rather than the Nishinam of the interior valleys of Tulare, San Joaquin, and Sacramento. There was no evidence to show that the maritime cultures of California had any knowledge of the game. The cowry shell was an available commodity among fur traders and whalers of the time, suggesting that they may easily have substituted the cowries for acorn halves. There is no evidence of Indo-Pacific shells among the native people of the west coast.

Stearn makes many assumptions about the voyages from Boston to the west coast, but offers no clear support for his argument. His conclusions about diffusion of this game rest on personal assumptions and he offers no comparative evidence that this game was played anywhere else besides in Boston and among the Nishinam.